


Seven Ways to Say Merry Christmas

by Jekkah



Category: Criminal Minds
Genre: Christmas, F/M, Family, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-23
Updated: 2013-01-23
Packaged: 2017-11-26 15:49:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 5,703
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/651941
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jekkah/pseuds/Jekkah
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>My Christmas gift to my fellow JJ/Hotch shippers. Hotch receives mysterious gifts to help him get into the Christmas spirit while Jack's away. (Obviously not a great mystery!)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. December 18th

**Author's Note:**

> Author's Note: The holiday season is upon us once again and just like last year, I would like to give a present to all of my fellow JJ/Hotch shippers. This should have seven short parts (admittedly, it is not finished) and my goal is to do one chapter a day until Christmas. Happy Holidays, everyone! Here's to many more JJ/Hotch scenes in the new year!

Hotch glanced at his watch for the fourth time a quarter of an hour. He sighed when he realized just how slow time was dragging. He supposed that he should head home, but there was nothing waiting for him there. Not for the first time, he cursed himself for letting Jessica take Jack with her to visit her parents in Albany. They left two days ago and wouldn't be back until after Christmas. Initially, it seemed like a good idea: there was a fifty-fifty chance that the team would be called away on a case and Jack hadn't seen his grandparents in over a year. But, then, the team was placed on stand down, leaving Hotch all alone at Christmas.

Shaking his head, Hotch chastised himself for such morose thoughts. He wasn't completely alone. The team was spending the 23rd together and he had been invited to spend the holidays with Dave, Erin, and Erin's children. Rossi and Strauss. That was a pairing that he was still getting used to, though he couldn't begrudge them as they both seemed to be happier than he could remember before. He, himself, had long since gotten over his break-up with Beth. He had liked her a whole lot, but it hadn't quite progressed into a deep love and the distance between them had ended their relationship without drama.

Sighing again, Hotch turned back to his paperwork. He hadn't touched any of it in quite some time, lost in his own musings. He rubbed his face with his hand and poised the pen to start making notes on one of Morgan's reports.

"Hey, Hotch," JJ said, cheerily, bouncing into his office.

Hotch jumped, his pen falling first to the desk, then to the floor. He gasped, "JJ! What are you still doing here?"

She chuckled at his actions. "I had some paperwork to get caught up on and figured I would do it while Henry's with Will for the night."

"That's a good plan." Hotch leaned forward, placing his arms on his desk. He let his eyes rove over her body, taking in her black skirt and tight blue sweater, his favorite combination on her. He blushed when he noticed her eyebrows raised. "So, um, how is Henry handling everything?"

"Better than either Will or I," she replied. "He loves having his daddy all to himself when they're together without any yelling or tension. Will and I are still finding our way. So, why are you here so late?"

Hotch sighed, recognizing her diversionary tactic. "Jack is with Jessica visiting his grandparents until after Christmas." He sighed again when she frowned. "I thought we would be away for the holiday. I hadn't anticipated Strauss' generosity."

JJ stared at him with steady, sympathetic eyes. Suddenly, she leapt forward and pulled Hotch from his seat. "Come on, boss. Time for you to go home."

"JJ, what-"

"Nope. I am ordering you to leave right now," JJ demanded. She prodded him towards the door, leaving him just enough time to grab his coat and bag on their way to the elevator. "You are to go home and do something Christmas-y."

Hotch shook his head as they got into the elevator. "Christmas-y?"

She nodded. "Bake some cookies. Sing a carol. Watch a movie. Anything, as long as it has to do with Christmas."

"Okay, okay," he conceded, after she threw in a hand on her hip and a raised eyebrow. They split up just outside the building. "Hey, JJ? Thanks."

The memory of the brilliant smile she shot him as they parted stayed with him the entire way home. He was still grinning as he walked up the steps of his porch. Hotch paused at the front door as a bit of green to his right caught his eye. Cautiously, he turned his head to find a Christmas tree leaning against the porch. There was a red envelope on one of the branches.

"What in the world?" Hotch muttered. He grabbed the envelope and pulled out the letter inside. It simply read "Merry Christmas." Hotch shrugged as he hulled the tree inside, figuring he'd thank Rossi tomorrow. Idly, he wondered if putting a tree into a tree stand counted as Christmas-y enough. He figured he should watch a movie, too, just in case.


	2. December 19th

"I'm telling you, Aaron," Rossi protested, standing in the middle of Hotch's office the next morning after the younger agent had summoned him, "I had nothing to do with that tree."

Hotch frowned. He didn't doubt the sincerity in Rossi's voice, but the lack of any other suspects made him nervous. "If you didn't, then who could have?"

Rossi sighed, already frustrated by Hotch's inquiry. "I don't know. Penelope, maybe? Or Jessica and Jack wanting to make sure that you have a good Christmas with them not there?"

"Maybe," he agreed, slightly buoyed over the thought that his son was thinking of him. Hotch's eyes narrowed. "But why wouldn't they sign the card?"

Rossi opened his mouth to counter Hotch's argument once more, only to be cut off by a knock on the door. He sighed gratefully when JJ's head popped in. She grinned at them both.

"Sorry for the interruption, but I need you to sign off on these cases for me," JJ told them.

"Not a problem. I was just leaving anyway," Rossi assured her before scurrying out the door.

JJ watched him leave, curiously, before handing the stack of folders to Hotch. "Everything okay?"

"Yes," Hotch replied, then sighed, "No. I don't know. When I got home last night, I found a Christmas tree on my porch with a note that just said 'Merry Christmas.' I have no idea whom it's from or why."

"My guess is that someone wants you to have a Merry Christmas," she replied, wryly. "Did you set it up?"

Hotch grumbled, "Yes. But I didn't put anything on it yet. The branches have to settle first. And I watched a Christmas movie, too - Elf - in case that didn't count as Christmas-y enough for you."

JJ grinned, warmth spreading through her chest knowing he had taken her advice to heart. "That's perfect. You should do something else tonight."

"Like what?"

"Bake cookies," she told him without hesitation. "I'll send you my grandmother's famous sugar cookie recipe."

Hotch grimaced, he was not known for his baking skills. "I don't know."

JJ raised an eyebrow at him. "They're easy to do and if they turn out bad, you can just toss away the batch." She bit her lip when he still hesitated. "Tell you what: you make the cookies tonight and Henry and I will come over tomorrow to help decorate the tree. I'll even bring dinner."

"That little Chinese place by your house?" he questioned, hopefully.

"Yep," she replied, holding out her hand. "Deal?"

Hotch shook her hand, relishing the feel of her soft skin against her own. "Deal."

JJ slowly slipped her hand from his, too wrapped in watching his hand to notice him watching her. "Now, about those papers..."

"Oh, no!" Hotch gasped as one of the grocery bags he was carrying started to slip from his grasp. He caught it inches before it hit the ground. Not for the first time since he left the office, he wondered why he was making cookies, but every time he thought about not making them, JJ's disappointed face flashed through his mind. Fleetingly, as he climbed the stairs, he thought that he should analyze why he saw her face and why it made him tingle, but he just wanted to enjoy the emotions for a change without thinking.

He was nearly at the door when he hit something with his foot. Hotch glanced down to see a medium sized box wrapped in red paper with green, purple, and blue ornaments. There was the same red envelope on top as on the tree yesterday. Hotch put down his bags to open the envelope. It read "Kala Christouyenna."

"I'm going to assume that means 'Merry Christmas'," Hotch muttered to himself. He unwrapped the box to reveal set after set of lights. "Looks like I'm putting up some lights."

Despite his growling, a smile spread across his face. Putting the lights on the tree meant that Henry could start putting up ornaments right away tomorrow. Hotch couldn't wait to see Henry's face when he got to decorate the entire tree his way. He knew the little boy would be thrilled.


	3. December 20th

"Henry, no! Henry, please, be careful," JJ scolded as her son ripped ornaments out of boxes without care.

"Oh, he's all right," Hotch assured her, looking over the ornaments on the table. He nudged Henry, nodding at an unopened box on the couch. "I'm not even sure where these ornaments came from. They appeared on the porch just like the tree and the lights."

JJ bent down and took a bite of a cookie. "And what did the card say this time?"

Hotch snatched the card from the mantle and handed it to her. It read "Kuwa na Krismasi njema," but he had no intentions of trying to say that. "I googled it. It means 'Merry Christmas'."

"Just like the others," she muttered, taking another bite of cookie. "Well, whomever it is clearly wants you to have a good Christmas." JJ shook her head as if clearing her thoughts. "So, do you not have ornaments of your own?"

"I do... somewhere." Hotch's voice trailed off as he tried to think of where exactly he left the box the ornaments. "It just didn't seem worth it with Jack not here. Besides, like you said, someone must want me to have a Merry Christmas if they keep dropping me off all the fixings."

Henry pulled on Hotch's pant leg. He grinned widely when Hotch looked down at him, holding his hands out for Hotch to pick him up. Henry handed Hotch a small piece of paper with a ribbon looped through the top. "Here, Hotch."

Hotch took the paper and studied it. There were four figures standing in what appeared to be a park or forest. "What do we have here?"

"It'sa orn'ment," Henry replied. He pointed to one of the figures. "That's Momma and me and Jackie and you. We're playing in da park. Momma says we have to leave, but I don't wanna. I wanna stay with you and Jackie."

"It's beautiful, Henry." Hotch found himself choked with tears over the small boy's gift. He walked over to the tree. "Why don't you hang this on the tree, right in the front? Oh, that's perfect!"

Henry giggled as Hotch hugged him. He wiggled to get down, rushing to JJ. "Momma! Hotch love me!"

JJ opened and closed her mouth several times, unsure of what to say. She glanced at Hotch, who was beaming. "Of course, he does. You're so loveable."

"I love Hotch, too, Momma!" Henry announced before bouncing back to the ornaments. He sang a broken version of "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" as he hung ornaments in the same one foot stretch of tree.

"He really does love you," JJ whispered to Hotch when he moved to stand next to her. She looked up at him from under her lashes, her cheeks warming. "He asks to see you guys every weekend."

Hotch kept his eyes on Henry, afraid to look at the alluring blond. "Well, that goes double for Jack. He usually starts on Wednesdays, wanting to know what our plans are and if we're going to see you... um, both of you."

JJ took another bite of cookie, the tension between the two heating up the room. She took a deep breath to calm her nerves. "You know, these cookies are fantastic. You really nailed my grandmother's recipe."

That's not all I'd like to nail, he thought, then mentally slapped himself. "Thank you. It was really easy, just like you said." They fell silent once again. As he felt his thoughts start to drift again, he said, "So, how are you and Will splitting up the holidays?"

"Ugh," JJ groaned. "Well, after much deliberation, I'm going to drop Henry off after dinner of Christmas Eve. He's going to spend the night and the morning with Will, then he's coming back to spend the rest of Christmas with me."

"At least he's going to see both of you guys," Hotch commented, a hint of sadness in his voice.

JJ touched Hotch's arm. "Is there any chance that you could bring Jack home for the holidays early?"

Hotch shrugged. "I suppose, but every time I talk to him, he's having such a good time. He's so looking forward to seeing his cousins. I just don't have the heart to take him away from all that."

"You are invited to spend the holidays with us. Henry would love it," JJ told him, making sure the sincerity shone through her eyes. "I would, too."

"Thank you, JJ," Hotch replied. He felt his head slowly lower towards her. He licked his lips when hers parted.

"Hotch!" Henry called out suddenly causing both adults to jump. "I can't reach!"

Hotch chuckled. "I guess I better help."

He hurried over to Henry, lifting him off the ground again to hang one of the ornaments. He took a chance to peek at JJ. She was watching the scene with a dreamy expression on her face. Hotch felt his heart skip. Christmas wasn't looking so bad after all.


	4. December 21st

"Hotch... are you drunk?"

Hotch looked up from the bar, his eyes blurry. He offered JJ a sloppy smile. "Maybe a little bit."

She flopped down on the stool beside him. Her eyes danced with amusement. "I don't think I've ever seen you drunk, little bit or not. What brought this on?"

"I-" Hotch took a deep breath. "I got my gift from my 'secret santa' this morning instead of after work."

"And that's a bad thing?" she asked, her voice losing all hint of merriment in the face of his distress.

He shrugged, gripping his glass of beer. "It is today."

JJ squeezed his shoulder. "Why?"

"Because whomever is doing this left me stockings. Four stockings!" Hotch cried. He cut her off when she opened her mouth. "It's like a slap in the face."

"I don't understand," JJ said, slowly. She was sincerely confused as to why a gift of stockings would cause such an adverse reaction in Hotch. "Why is it a slap in the face?"

Hotch rubbed his face, debating whether to let her in or laugh it off with a joke. He gazed into her blue orbs, lost in the concern he saw there. Between her worry and the alcohol loosening his tongue, however, opening up seemed like a good idea. "Haley and I tried for a long time to have Jack, did you know that?"

JJ shook her head. "No."

"We tried for years without any luck. We even went through rounds of in vitro fertilization. Haley had several miscarriages. We were just about ready to give up when she got pregnant with Jack. We held our breaths for four months, just wanting to get to the sonogram to know that everything was okay. And he was. He was perfect."

"He is perfect," JJ agreed, "but I don't understand what that has to do with stockings."

Hotch took a sip of his beer. "I always wanted more children. I wanted a family. I'll... I'll never get that chance."

She frowned. "Why would you say that? You are a great guy. You could meet someone one day, have more children."

"With my schedule? With my issues?" Hotch countered. "I couldn't make it work with Haley or Beth. They were understanding, but even they reached their limit. I'll never be able to make it work with anyone."

"You listen to me, Aaron Hotchner," JJ demanded. She turned him in his seat so that they were facing each other. She put her hands on his neck. "You are an amazing person. You are sweet and kind. You love your kid more than anything in this world. You're strong and brave. Any woman would be lucky to have in their life."

Hotch blushed furiously. "I-"

She shook him slightly. "No. You are not allowed to argue with me on this, you got it?"

"Okay, I got it." Hotch suppressed a groan when JJ removed her hands. He forced himself to look out into the bar at the rest of the team. Hotch settled his gaze on Morgan who was trying to get Reid to dance. "What about you? Did you ever think about having more kids?"

"I didn't for a long time," JJ admitted. "Henry was plenty. But I've been thinking lately that maybe it wasn't so much that I didn't want another baby, but that I didn't want to have another baby with Will. I think it might be good for Henry to have a sibling or two."

Hotch grew quiet once again. He closed his eyes briefly before speaking. "Whomever you choose to have another child... or children... with is an incredibly lucky person."

JJ grinned, hitting him playfully with her shoulder. "Hotch, if I didn't know any better, I'd think you sounded jealous."

"I, uh, I-"

"I'm only messing you, Hotch. Relax," she teased, laughing at his discomfort. "So, what did the card say this time?"

He scrunched up his face. "Sung Tan Chuk Ha."

JJ tittered. "God bless you?"

"Ha-ha," Hotch shot back. "It's Korean for 'Merry Christmas'."

"It's nice," she assured him. "I've been thinking. I think what you're secret santa meant with the stockings is that he or she hopes that you will have that dream of more children someday."

Hotch smirked. "I've been thinking, too. Maybe, I was a little jealous."

JJ's mouth dropped. "You-"

"Hey, Jayje," Garcia interrupted, pulling her from the stool. "I need you to come settle a bet between me and Rossi."

Hotch watched as Garcia dragged a protesting JJ away. He took another sip of his beer. Visions of blond children with dark, brown eyes ran through his head, but he felt no inclination to push them


	5. December 22nd

Hotch paced his living room, pausing every so often at the four stockings over the mantel. He couldn't remember the last time he felt so nervous, especially over a girl. Well, not just any girl, he mused, JJ. She was headed over to drop off gifts that she had bought Henry. She had caught him snooping and was afraid he would find his gifts before Christmas.

His heart beat a little faster as he imagined her shiny blond hair, crisp blue eyes, and perfect pink lips. Hotch shook his head. He had always known JJ was a beautiful woman, had encouraged her to use her allure often enough on cases, but lately it seemed that he couldn't get the image of her smiling in front of him out of his brain. It was crazy to him that after nearly a decade of knowing her, now would be when he started falling for her.

But the more he thought about it, the more it made sense. For the first time since they'd met, they were both free. They were spending more time with each other outside of work instead of in the office. He couldn't hardly remember a weekend over the last few months where they weren't together for at least a small part of it, whether it was taking the kids to the park, meeting up for coffee, or camped out on the couch watching movies with two small boys between them.

If only he knew if she felt the same way.

And how to initiate a relationship with her if she did.

Hotch gasped when his doorbell rang. He hurried to open the door. "JJ, hi!"

She gave him an odd look at his enthusiasm, but let it pass without comment. "Hey. How are you feeling?"

"After last night's imbibing, you mean?"

"Imbibing?" JJ repeated. She chuckled. "You've been spending too much time with Reid lately."

Hotch shrugged. "I'm doing okay, amazingly." He looked down at the bags in her hands. "Is that all or do you have more?"

JJ glanced back at her car, the entire back seat filled with gifts. "I, uh, went a little overboard. Compensating, I guess."

"I understand," Hotch told her, following her to her car. "I think what I spent on Jack's first Christmas after the divorce would have paid for his first semester of college."

"It does get easier, though, right?" she asked him. "The guilt?"

Hotch nodded. "You have nothing to feel guilty about, JJ. You are doing the best thing for the both of you. If you're happy, Henry will be happy, too. You're doing the right thing."

JJ muttered, "I sure hope so."

"What was that?"

"Nothing," JJ assured him. She pulled more bags from the car. "Hey, did you notice the boxes on your front porch?"

Hotch peered at the house. "No."

JJ led him up the stairs. She put the gifts just inside the door before turning her attention to the brown boxes. She picked up the green card and handed it to Hotch, then dug into the nearest container. "Oh, look. It's Christmas decorations."

"'Cause the tree and the stockings aren't enough?" Hotch grumbled.

"No!" she shot back. "These are outside decorations. Ooh, can we put these up? Please? I love outside decorations and now that we're in the apartment, we don't have any place to hang them."

Hotch frowned slightly. "Are you sure you have the time? Don't you have to get back to Henry?"

JJ shook her head. "Henry is spending the day with his fairy godmother. I am all yours for the foreseeable future."

"Uh," Hotch stumbled, his cheeks heating up. He was beginning to wonder if he would ever get his embarrassment under control. He felt himself melting at the sight of her puppy dog expression. "Sure."

"Really?"

Hotch sighed, "Really. I mean, why not? I've already put up everything else that Santa's dropped off here. Might as well continue the tradition."

JJ clapped as she bounced on the balls of her feet. She quickly moved the rest of Henry's presents into the house. She dove into the boxes with an intensity that had Hotch standing back in apprehension. He found his eyes drawn to her backside as she was bent over.

"What did the card say?" JJ asked over her shoulder.

"Huh?" Hotch again felt himself flush at being caught checking her out.

JJ smirked. "What did your card say?"

Hotch let out a long breath. "Oh. It, uh, it said 'Joyeux Noël."

"Interesting. French." She laughed at his surprised expression. "I took it in high school."

He swore, as he began to organize the decorations that she unpacked, that she whispered, "That's not all the French I did either."


	6. December 23rd

"Hotch! Hotch!" Henry shouted, rushing to the normally solemn man. Hotch captured the small boy and tossed him into the air. They both laughed to amazement of the BAU team members nearby. "Merry Christmas!"

"Merry Christmas to you!" Hotch answered, tickling Henry's side. "Are you having fun at Uncle Dave's party?"

Henry nodded enthusiastically. "Uncle Derek gave me soda and Aunt Penny gave me lots of cookies!"

Hotch resisted the urge to glare at the two agents, who were hiding in the corner after being busted. "You're going to be bouncing off the walls all night."

"I can bounce off of walls?"

"Absolutely not," JJ told him, firmly, walking up to the two of them. "Hotch just meant that you were going to be very excited tonight."

"Ohhhh." Henry tilted his head to the side. "It's Christmas! Of course, I'm excited!"

JJ ruffled his head before taking him from Hotch and setting him down. "Go play with Aunt Penny and Uncle Derek. They want to spend lots of time with you tonight."

Henry jumped, then tore off towards his aunt and uncle, shouting, "Yay!"

"That was a good trick," Hotch muttered in JJ's ear. He was amused to see a blush creeping up her neck.

"Yeah, well, it's what they deserve," she replied, looking a bit uncomfortable. She rolled her shoulders. "So, did your Secret Santa deliver yet?"

Hotch smirked at her obvious turn of subject. "I did. There was a box of food waiting for me."

JJ squinted her eyes. "A box of... food?"

"Yeah," he responded, nonchalant. "A Christmas feast based on the amount of food in the box. Speaking of which, what are your plans for tomorrow? I mean, since you don't have Henry?"

"Well, I, I mean," she stumbled. JJ took a deep breath. "Honestly? I was planning on drinking wine, curled up on the couch, watching movies, and missing Henry terribly."

Hotch shot her a sympathetic smile. "Would you like to come over for dinner? I can't promise that it'll be edible. But, if it turns out horrible, we can drink wine, watch movies on the couch, and commiserate together."

JJ looked at him, mischievously. She knew he had caught her blush and wanted a bit of revenge. "Will there be cuddling involved?" She laughed at the stunned expression on his face. "Don't worry, Hotch. I'll keep to my side of the couch. I would love to have dinner with you."

"Good," Hotch puffed. He held in a sigh of relief that she had accepted his invitation. He half-closed his eyes when she turned away from him. Biting the inside of his mouth, Hotch once again leaned down so that his lips hovered just above her ear. "Of course, if you want to cuddle, my arms are always open."

"What?" JJ gasped, whipping her head around. She stared at him with her mouth agape.

"Hotch!" Henry squealed once again. He ran full steam towards the couple.

JJ hopped out of the way. "Incoming."

Henry scrambled up Hotch, holding one hand behind his back. Hotch took a step back to steady them both. "What do you have there, Henry?"

"I can't show you," Henry replied, mysteriously.

"Why not?"

Henry grinned. "Because Mama needs to be here, too."

JJ rolled her eyes, sure that Garcia was up to no good. She moved back to Hotch's side. "What do you have, baby?"

"It's missle toe-ch," Henry announced, pulling out the green sprig. He held it over JJ's head. "Hotch has to kiss you, Mama!"

"Henry," JJ said, in a warning tone. She opened her mouth to say more, but was stopped by Hotch placing a hand on her upper arm.

Hotch pointed to the mistletoe. "Where did you get the mistletoe?"

Henry danced in Hotch's arms. "From Uncle Spence! Uncle Spence! Uncle, uncle Spence!"

"Hotch, I'm sorry. I'll go-" JJ was again stopped by Hotch, but not from his hand on her arm, but from his lips on hers. He kept the kiss sweet and light with just a hint of heat behind it. Her scent overwhelmed him and he itched claim her mouth as his own, but refused to do so in front of her son and his colleagues. He settled instead for placing his free hand on her waist, rubbing his thumb under her shirt where it could remain unseen.

"Wow," JJ whispered when he pulled away. She bit her bottom lip and chanced to look around the room. All eyes were upon them. Thinking quickly, she stood on her toes to kiss Henry. "And one for my special boy."

Henry beamed, kissing her back. He then turned and kissed Hotch's cheek. "And a kiss for Hotch."

Hotch put Henry on the ground. "Why don't you go share that with everyone?" Henry readily agreed and raced off. Hotch turned to JJ. "So, tomorrow, then."

"Tomorrow," JJ agreed. She took a few steps before looking over her shoulder. "What did the card say this time?"

"Buon Natale," Hotch replied. "It's Italian."

JJ nodded, resuming her path to Garcia. Hotch paused for a few minutes, watching as JJ dazzled the room. He may have had pure intentions when he first asked her to dinner, but the thoughts running through his end now were anything but.


	7. December 24th

Christmas Eve found Hotch once again pacing in his living room. He and JJ had made plans for her to come to his house about four, but as the clock flipped to 4:37, he hadn't seen nor heard from her. With sickening fear grabbing hold in his stomach, he began to think that she wasn't coming, that he had pushed her too far last night with the kiss.

She had seemed find at Rossi's party after the kiss, though the more he thought about it, the more he realized that she had gone through great care to not be alone with him until the end of the night when they finalized their plans. She hadn't seemed upset, but he wasn't always the most astute person when it came to the female mind. His marriage to Haley had proven that. Of course, very few men were, he reasoned in a voice that sounded suspiciously like Rossi.

Hotch took a deep breath. The smells of turkey filled his senses. He had cooked the meal just as he had promised. For the bits that he tasted, it was fairly decent. Not surprising, really; his mother had foisted cooking lessons upon him and Sean when they were younger. He supposed that was where Sean's love of cooking had originated. Hotch balked at the finer points of the kitchen, but he could pull together a respectable meal when the occasion called for it.

Sighing, he began to make his way back to the kitchen to check on the food. He hoped it would bring a distraction that he desperately needed. He paused in the hallway when the doorbell rang. With hope in his step, he practically hopped to the door. He opened it, expecting to find JJ there, but was met instead with a small, wrapped box and a blue envelope.

"Really?" Hotch muttered, frustrated. He picked up the box and brought it inside. Hotch opened the envelope, which read, "Froehliche Weihnachten." Even he could tell that was German. Hotch unwrapped the small box and pulled out a silver frame with the word "Family" written across the bottom. As he studied the picture, his heart began to pound wildly. The picture had clearly been taken at Garcia's annual Halloween bash. He was standing next to JJ, laughing at something she had said. Henry was in his arms, pulling on Hotch's ear while Jack hung off of JJ's waist, his face in open adoration as he watched JJ.

A tiny giggle from the living room tore Hotch away from the picture. Cautiously, he moved towards the sound. Hotch froze in the doorway when he spotted JJ, Henry, and Jack standing in front of the Christmas tree.

"Merry Christmas!" they shouted together.

"What- how- I-" Hotch stuttered, his face red and his eyes wide. His brain was trying to wrap around the idea that Jack was standing in the living room along with JJ and Henry. "Jack?"

Jack broke away from the other two and jumped into his father's arms. He kissed and hugged Hotch. "Hi, Daddy! Did we surprise you?"

Hotch nodded slowly. "You certainly did." He found JJ's eyes. "How did you-"

"Rossi," JJ answered. She gathered Henry into her arms and stepped over to him. "He chartered a plane and we picked Jack up this morning. As much fun as he was having with his cousins, he really wanted to spend the holidays with his dad."

"So, then, you-"

"-were responsible for the gifts this week?" JJ finished. She nodded and he caught sight of nervousness in her eyes. "I was. I knew how depressed you were about spending the holidays alone so I wanted to cheer you up."

Hotch glanced around the room. "You did all of this by yourself?"

JJ shook her head, slowly, a sly smile spreading across her face. "Almost. Reid had to drop off a gift or two, but the idea was all mine."

"But why?" he asked, his voice riddled with confusion.

"You really don't know?" JJ shifted Henry onto her hip. She cupped Hotch's cheek before moving to the back of his neck. She brought his face down to hers, placing a chaste kiss on his lips. She turned her face, laying her cheek against his. She whispered, "Because I love you."

Hotch pulled back, surprised. He searched her eyes for the truth. Hotch tucked a piece of hair behind her ear. "I love you, too."

JJ opened her mouth, but was interrupted by Henry announcing, "I love you, too, Hotch. Jackie, I love you."

"I love you, too, Henry," Jack replied, patiently. He patted Henry's head, then turned to JJ. "I love you, too, JJ. Does this mean we get to be a family now?"

"It means that we get to spend a lot more time together," JJ explained, "and that your dad and I will be spending time alone together."

Jack sighed as though the two adults were acting stupid. "Okay, but Uncle Dave has the wedding set up for June so we should probably be a family by then."

Hotch and JJ gaped at each then back at Jack. "He what?"

Jack shrugged. "That's what he said."

"Why don't you take Henry into the bathroom and get washed up? Dinner's almost ready," Hotch told Jack, placing him on the ground. He waited until the two boys had run out of the room to pull JJ flush against his body. "I can't believe you did all of this. I can't believe you love me."

"I can't believe we're getting married in June," JJ chuckled. She grew serious as she looped her arms around his neck. "I know this is crazy. I'm just divorced; you're just out of a relationship. We each have a kid to consider, but this, this being in your arms with our two boys down the hall, getting ready to eat a family dinner, just feels so right."

"It really does," Hotch agreed. He smiled as he heard the two boys giggling from the bathroom. He couldn't imagine a more perfect holiday. "Merry Christmas, JJ."

"Merry Christmas, Hotch."

END


End file.
